title: Cervical cancer mortality in Belgium, 1955-1989. A descriptive study.
abstract: This study describes trends in cervical cancer mortality among women in Belgium from 1954 to 1989. Data are analysed by means of the standardised mortality rate, age- and cohort-specific mortality rates and standardised cohort mortality ratios. The age-standardised mortality rate decreased progressively from 6.3/100,000 women-years in the first period (1955-1959) to 3.8/100,000 in 1985-1989, indicating a decline of 39.7% over the seven quinquennial periods. A decrease was observed in almost all age groups between 30 and 69 years. In the last 15 years, no further decline, but even a discrete increase, occurred for the age categories younger than 50 years. The successive cohorts born between 1915 and 1939 expressed a continuing lower risk of cervical cancer mortality. This trend was not observed for the most recent generations, for whom even a slight increase of the standardised cohort mortality ratio could be distinguished.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Palacky University, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vyslouzilova
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arbyn
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Van Oyen
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Drieskens
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Quataert
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001530:Belgium / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis; D015996:Survival Rate; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality*